It’s possible to spend so much time comparing your perceived lack with others’ perceived luxury your own blessings are lost on you.
God’s blessings are a luxury to you. You’re so used to them they don’t seem like it. They sometimes show up on your spirit’s doorstep costumed like just another gaggle of neighborhood challenges, holding their bags out. This creates a negative-tinged attitude that, if unchecked, colors your entire day.
How to keep that from happening? Slow down. Back away from the intensity with which you’re making your TO-DO list become your TA-DAHHHH! list in the shortest amount of time.
Three employees of the same company happened to be seated at the same table while eating their lunch. Two were in an animated discussion over their best elapsed times getting to work. One said, “Man, I shaved 6 more seconds off my all-time best by coming this different route! I’m jazzed!” He nodded as his companion admired him with a well-modulated “Dude.” Glancing at his iPhone, the first one suddenly jumped up, wrapping the last couple of bites up and bolting. “Gotta get back to it!” wafted back over the shoulder of his drab-green hoodie.
The companion glanced over at their lunch buddy, a Chinese man who’d been silent throughout the others’ spirited competitiveness. “Not bad, huh? A whole 6 seconds?”
The quiet man finished chewing his food, sipped some iced tea and swallowed, clearing his throat. “And what significant thing shall we do with those added 6 seconds?”
Hurrying becomes a habit.
Schooling oneself to stobbut is a good one with which to replace it.
Often, the result is that you actually get as much accomplished while relaxed as you would have otherwise. The difference is that the former is relatively stress-free, while the latter only seems to generate more.
This is an intentional thing. You must stop and smell the coffee on purpose. We’ve stamped our normal way of life with the imprimatur of accelerated heart rates and ulcers. This is a dumb way to live.
To take or make time to STOP & SMELL THE COFFEE . . .
~ Stand up straight, stretch, and take a few deep breaths.
~ Think through what you’re doing, why you’re doing it, and if it’s necessary.
~ If necessary, ask yourself if there’s another, more pleasant way to make it happen.
~ If unnecessary, stop. Be unordinary. Resist the urge to fill that space with an equally stressful task.
~ Call a friend. Chances are they can use the break, too. And, yes. Have coffee.
~ Take a walk. Greet all with a gentle smile. Read a chapter. Read another one.
~ Whatever relaxes you, do that.
The more you love someone else, the easier it is to defer to their likes and dislikes. Soon, you catch yourself ‘relaxing’ by doing their favorite things, not yours. This generates more stress, though subtle. You have permission to do your favorite relaxing things. Be honest about what they are, especially if those you love don’t see anything relaxing in your choices. Let them enjoy theirs. You enjoy yours. This is restful for you both. You might even find mutual satisfaction in the differentness. This is especially true if you have little in common.
I find value in this, and rarely suggest something I myself have not done. These posts generally publish on Mondays. This, you’ve noted, is Thursday. I am an Intuitive as well as a recovering perfectionist, with a dash of OCD tossed in for flavor. To not get this done Monday defies my sense of order.
I waited until this morning to finish this because I’ve been doing the very things I just suggested to you. Part of my ‘Now’ includes periodic dehydration, which takes days to treat. I don’t do my best writing when dealing with that.
So I stopped. I’m more relaxed now, and upon re-engaging this post this morning, I promptly scrapped part of what I’d been trying to force through my tired, confused brain. It’s my wish the wait’s been worth it for you.
And thus endeth COFFEEOLOGY.
Coffee?
© D. Dean Boone, October 2018